December 31, 2003
998 - Happy New Year
Happy New Year. May this one be the best we've ever had.
December 30, 2003
997 - deadpool
An annual end-of-the-year tradition, it's just about past time to get your picks in for the Amish Tech Support Deadpool. The rules are a little different this year, but I think I have a chance, if all sorts of weird things happen.
December 29, 2003
996 - post xmas pre newyears
Good day, Happy Monday, and welcome to the last week of the year. Although I was home most of the time, I didn't do much any posting, but I did get some reading, tinkering, cleaning and hacking in, so that counts for something.
Christmas was nice, got to see family and friends on several occasions, eat good food, give and receive a few nice presents. I'm quite looking forward to working down the small debt and few pounds I've accumilated.
New Years Eve is quickly approaching, and some more RSVPs are starting to trickle in - my brother with some of his friends, my local friends and some Santa Cruz friends will all be making it to the event, so a good time should be had by all. If I know you and you'd like to attend, shoot me an email.
Instead of New Years resolutions, I've got some solid goals in mind that I'd like to accomplish by the end of 2004. In no particular order:
That's the short list, I'm sure there are a few more. I think they're all attainable. That's all for now, hoping to see everyone at New Years. Peace out, brothers.
December 25, 2003
995 - Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas to one and all. May peace prevail throughout the land.
December 24, 2003
994 - happy xmas eve
A merry Christmas eve to all my friends, family and neighbors, a happy 6th night of Hanukkah, and a belated happy solstice. The days are getting longer, the presents are under the tree, mad cows and orange alerts warm our hearts, and we're in the home stretch for parties and get-togethers (I have at least 5 in the next 7 days). Warmest wishes for a safe, happy and fun holiday.
December 23, 2003
993 - Malvo sentenced to life
CNN has the story that the jury in the Lee Boyd Malvo case spared his life and only gave him a life sentence.
Now, I get to wait for all the news pundits telling me he deserves to die and how this jury doesn't know what they're talking about.
Merry Christmas.
December 22, 2003
992 - christmas week
Happy Christmas week to you and yours. Today's day 1 of my 3 day week - that's always nice. Started off the day with an earthquake, about 200 miles north of us. I was on the 3rd floor at work, however, and felt it as a gentle, frightening rolling motion. It's weird to be able to feel a quake from so far away.
In consumer news, I think I'm done with my shopping - spent a little more than I thought I would, but we're in a position to be able to do that. I haven't asked for much this year (I have an Amazon wishlist full of stuff, but it's just things I'd like, nothing I'm really hoping for). I expect to be plesently surprised this year, no matter what I get.
Just so I can keep track, this is entry 992. If I time it correctly, I can post entry 1000 on January 10, my 3 year anniversary of blogging.
Finally, the days are getting longer after many months of growing darkness. Looking foward to celebrating this and the new year with all my friends.
Not much else for now - just eatting poppycock, hoping not to get sick. Enjoy this time, whether you're alone or with friends or with family.
December 19, 2003
December 18, 2003
Entry 990
This is Insignifica (and Michris.com, going back) entry number 990 using Movable Type (and Blogger, going back). Since we celebrate our use of the Base-10 system, I should probably plan something special for number 1000.
Reading this entry of Wil's, I'm come to the conclusion that we write similarly. I've only been reading him for a little over a year, and I don't think he reads me (he's been to the site, but I don't think he's a regular reader), so I'm curious as to why we have such a similar style. Some thoughts:
One thing that made me think of it was this line in his entry, talking about The Cure's "Plainsong":
but every time I hear it, it's like there's a chain connected to my heart and the back of my head, and the song grips it, and gently pulls me up toward the sky.
It made me think of this entry from last September, where I said:
I'm listening to Flickerstick's "Lift (With Love We Will Survive)". As just stated to random people online (and more here, now): "It makes me want to dance and fly".
The passages just reminded me of each other. Man, I'm a fanboy. Ok. Enough.
I'm going to keep harping on New Year's until I do something about it, but RSVPs just aren't happening. We may have 30 people there, we may have 5. I worry about the later. RSVP if you're invited, and drop me a line if you aren't, but would like to come (your chances of me saying yes are greatly improved if I know you, have heard of you, or you're young, single and female). 13 days till the party, 7 days till Christmas. Yay December.
December 16, 2003
atheist news and meetup
For Atheists in Orange County (or Riverside, LA and San Diego, if you're looking for a drive), the OC Atheists meetup is tonight, 7 pm, at the Harp Inn in Costa Mesa. These are usually a good time, we talk more politics than religion, but it's fun chatting with people who are like-minded in some ways and very different in others.
I'm very open/loud about my atheism - I think it's important when you're a member of an "invisible" minority group to show that it's ok to be what you are, and not feel like you have to hide. I don't feel repressed by it - I've never been denied a job, not served in a restaurant or told to leave a location because of my beliefs. But there is a fair deal of prejudice against atheists, very often spoken/printed. People make wide assumptions, like associating all atheists with all communists, saying we worship the devil, or claim we're trying to take religion away from them.
Most of these wide assumptions are baseless - atheists are a hugely varied group, bound together only by a lack of belief in gods. Some are communists, some may believe in the devil (though it's unlikely), and some may be trying to take religion away from believers. For the most part, however, atheists don't make a big deal of their beliefs. You probably know some atheists and don't know it. The political/loud atheists tend to stand out, of course, and I'm sure other non-believers may not agree with our approaches/tactics. I see that only as a way to get the quieter members of the group to speak out and say how they feel, which is good for the community.
I tend to read a lot of news, and I'll often search google news for appearances of the words atheist, atheists, and atheism, just to see what people are saying. This brings up a lot of letters to the editor, news articles with passing references, and angry columns in non-objective publications from all over the world. People are mad about their rights being taken away by atheists, or the government supporting the "religion of atheism", or the evil "atheists and liberals" invading our schools. Like I said earlier, I don't feel repressed as an atheist, but I will say that I'm glad I live in a place (southern California) where I can say so without dealing with a lot of the people I read about.
For more on loud/political atheists, check out this article at AtheistWeb, leave a comment and tell me what you think.
December 15, 2003
december monday
Another Monday, another post weekend greeting from me. Welcome to all the traffic slashdot is sending this direction. If you'd like to get moderated high, here are some techniques:
There are many other tricks, those are just the ones I've noticed work for me. Why is this important? It isn't. But it can be fun to have your ideas read by others, and if you have a website in your .sig or profile, it will drive some traffic to your site.
In other news, Christmas is quickly sneaking up on me; I've got to get cards out early this week, get a tree Tuesday or Wednesday, bake some cookies, and finish some shopping. New Years party planning is also coming along nicely. This is a season for rememberance and joy; try to remember that when shopping and cutting me off in the parking lot at the mall.
It's good we caught Saddam. But we still haven't found any WMDs, discovered any ties to larger terror, or improved living conditions in Iraq. Don't forget that the first two points were used to justify this war, and the third was used to make people forget about the first two. There are many, many other horrible dictators in the world that we have either ignored or supported in the last years, including today. Given this, getting rid of Saddam isn't a very good justification for breaking international law or invading a country.
That's all for now. Happy holidays.
December 12, 2003
absurdist edge
Back in 2001, I finally stopped updating/shut down the Absurdist Edge, my second website (after michris.com), and the first one that I wanted to have regularly updated, wacky content - as I've mentioned before, it wanted so bad to be a blog, but I didn't have the know how nor did simple solutions like Blogger or Movable Type yet exist, so TAE was destined to be a site too rarely updated.
I found out today, however, that several sites still link to The Absurdist Edge (or try to - I let http://www.theabsurdistedge.com expire over a year ago). Several of these are sites I never know linked, which means there were links out there, and people reading, for years. The sites I found that still link, not including the various "Free For All" links pages that did, include:
http://www.inter-change.com/online/weird.htm - Directory of weird sites. Today is the first day I've ever seen this site.
http://www.bomis.com/rings/Mhumor-useless_pages-recreation - Another directory I had never seen before.
http://www.arts-entertainment-recreation.com/Recreation/Humor/Useless_Pages/ - More of the same. These directories are all starting to look the same. There's a good chance I submitted information to a submission service, so these listings appeared everywhere.
http://www.math.okstate.edu/~raven/hot.html - Finally a personal site. I don't believe I know this person, but they seemed to like the site enough to link to it. Thanks, Raven!
http://www.penncen.com/7wonders/7apr98.html - The Seven Wonders website gave the Absurdist Edge one of it's first awards, unsolicited. The page is still linked here.
http://links.ajokes.com/Useless_Pages/more4.html - One more directory.
http://207.200.81.7/Recreation/Humor/Useless_Pages - Either a Netscape directory page or a mirror (I'm too lazy to check). Funny aside: the link right above mine is for a site of a "Selection of pointless and one gag sites, which have been created, abandoned and never updated".
http://cgi.botbot.com/dir/$/Recreation/Humor/UselessPages/ - Another directory. I didn't link to it because it has an annoying amount of popup crap.
http://search.hotplugins.com/5397/Recreation/Humor/Useless_Pages/ - uno mas.
That's all I know about offhand. Of course, Insignifica's links to and mentions of the site don't seem to be included in google, so there very well may be more out there.
There's a lot more to the Absurdist Edge story - the name comes from the Absurdist Club, a geeky group I ruled over in high school, named for a substitute teacher who called my friends Adam, Leo and me "the Absurdist Edge" of the school. After that (the club was forcefully disbanded by school officials), it was the name of my radio show at KZSC 88.1 FM in Santa Cruz, which aired at various times for 2 years. After moving from Santa Cruz, and spending more time developing michris.com and insignifica.org, TAE kinda fell by the wayside, and I stopped updating the site. It tended to be stale anyway, but it did have the Absurdcam, my first webcam (years before most people had them - 1997, almost as long as Jennicam), some humorous files and pictures (including my first photoshopping attempts, again from 1997), literature and links. Thanks to the internet archive, you can take a peek into the past here. Enjoy!
December 11, 2003
buzznet, gifts
I've put up a link to my new Buzznet account, which lets me publish directly from my phonecam to the internet. Very cool service, free for 10 photos a day (more than I'd ever put up), and can be used for emailing regular pictures too. I've always wanted that ability, now I just wish I had a better cam to do it with. For now, my silly phone camera will do just fine to let me easily document and post things I see.
New Year's prep is in full swing - the guest list is growing, including some friends I haven't seen in a few years. Should be a good time. If I know you, or you're a regular reader, Drop me a note and I'll drop you an invite. Likewise, if you'd like a Christmas card from yours truely, or want to exchange gifts, just let me know. It's a fun thing to do this time of year.
December 09, 2003
word of the day - conterminous
Word of the day (word I saw, didn't know, but liked):
conterminous - adj
1 : having a common boundary
2 : enclosed within one common boundary (the 48 conterminous states)
where have i been?
Man, where the hell have I been? It's been days since I posted, and for no particularly good reason. Oh well, I'm here now, America!
Because I'm a trend follower as much as a trendmaker (and because I want to prove Newsmax wrong), I'm declairing George W. Bush a miserable failure.
(And speaking of "Beef Burglar", I'm coming up third in google now, thankyouverymuch. That's something considering how low Insignifica's traditionaly ranked there.) Update: My 3rd place ranking has disappeared in the last hour. Darn you, google!
The new year is almost upon us, meaning it's time for the 5th Annual New Years Mikestravaganza. If I know you and you didn't get the invite, drop me a note. It should be a grand event.
I've been thinking a lot about diamonds lately. Why do we wear them? Knock-offs are just as (or more) shiny and clear, it's hard to tell where your diamonds come from oftentimes (considering blood diamond and slavery issues), and they're expensive as all hell. I can appreciate the "I like to wear pretty things" angle easiest, but it just seems like so much status and so little substance. Maybe I'm just not big on symbolism (and I realize that until DeBeers came alone, they weren't a traditional engagement practice), but I just don't see why.
That's all for now - enjoy your day.
December 03, 2003
boy punished for saying mom is gay
Boy, this is fucked up:
Boy punished for talking about gay mom
The ACLU also has a page about the case, including the letter they sent to the school and copies of the documents sent home with the child.
One of my biggest fears is that this kind of thing happens much more than is reported, causing all sorts of undue grief upon kids and their parents. I'm also waiting patiently for the first asshole to come forward and say "the kid shouldn't be talking about that" or "my kid shouldn't have to hear that", or that the ACLU is just a uber-liberal special interest group and good Americans should shut them down. Do any conservitive groups out there fight for civil rights?
December 02, 2003
december the second
Good day happy December, and happy Tuesday to you and yours.
Quite the busy weekend - two Thanksgiving dinner (one for my family, one I hosted for my g/f's family), a trip to Disneyland, lots of cleaning, and a full day of work on the Friday in the middle. Good to see the family, eat a lot of food, socialize. December's a big month full of that, though. I can't wait.
Speaking of socializing, The Fifth Annual New Years Mikestravaganza is in the works. Smaller venue this year, but I'm hoping to have the same number of people. If I know you, or you're a friend of a friend, drop me a line and I'll send you an invite. Drinking, dancing, good eats (the finest meats and cheeses from all the land) and good people will all be there. Will you?
Gift exchanging: Buy me something on my gift list, and I'll buy you something on yours. Really!
Our Texas Hold 'Em poker tournament scheduled for this weekend has been postponed to another weekend - there were just too many conflicts. If you have a date preference, let me know.
I've begun linking to Random Noise Bursts, who I discovered when it's author posted to AtheistWeb. Some good, long pieces. Take a read.
That's all for now - I've got all sorts of political rants on deck. Stay tuned!
